CuriositiesMAY 16, 2025

30 Historic Cartoons That Show Just How Different Things Were

Viktorija Strelciunaite and Louise Pieterse

Before the endless scroll of social media or 24/7 news channels, getting a unique take on the day's events often meant turning to the cartoons tucked inside a newspaper or favorite magazine. Editorial drawings, clever caricatures, and daily comic strips were a prominent way people saw the world, blending commentary with art. Diving into archives primarily covering the years between the 1880s and the 1980s reveals a fascinating collection. These are the images that captured the newsmakers and moments of their time, drawn with a style and perspective quite "worlds apart" from what we're accustomed to seeing today. It offers a compelling look back at how things used to be presented.

#1 Beef Has Gone Up, Between 1880 And 1900

#2 The Busy Bees What Buzz Beneath The Bonnet Of Dame Democracy, 1896 July 2

#3 Acts, Xxvi, 29, 1894 Nov. 25

#4 There Are Others, 1896 March 29

#5 Uncle Sam Plays Golf, 1894 Dec. 30

#6 The Day We Sillybrate, 1896 April 1

#7 After The Holidays, 1896 Jan. 4

#8 Oh, I Feel Just As Happy As A Big Sun-Flower, Between 1880 And 1900

#9 Young Soldier Looking At Bill From Uncle Sam About Military Reform, Between 1880 And 1900

#10 Distressing Predicament Of The Honorable John Boyd Thacher, 1896 Sept. 26

#11 The Broken Slate, 1896 Nov. 5

#12 A Solitary Horseman - G.p.r. James Novels, 1896 March 26

#13 Pity The Sorrows Of A Poor Old Man, 1896 Oct. 3

#14 The Sleeping Beauty No. 2, 1893 July 16

#15 Grover Cleveland As Fisherman Helping "The Post" Girl With "Presidential Policy" Oar On "Ship Of State", Between 1880 And 1900

#16 The Post's Page Of "If's", 1894 Nov. 11

#17 Uncle Samuel Richelieu, Between 1880 And 1900

#18 I Want Yer, Ma Honey! I Do, 1896 Feb. 21

#19 An Uneven Contest, 1896 Aug. 16

#20 Two Sides To The Financial Situation, 1893 Aug. 20